Inger



3 SheetsSheet '1.

Patented Sept. 10, 1895.

e e t N m W W U T I v I I A .v \Q \Q Q I U Q U M A? to if b H A? W 5; M kI W W.'M. SOHLESINGER. ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

(No Model.)

W] T NESSES (No Modem 7 s Sheets-Sheet -2. W. M. SGHLESINGER.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

No. 546,059. Patented Sept. 10,1895.

INVENYOR E A TTORNEY (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

W. SGHLESING'ER. I ELECTRIC RAILWAY. No. 546,059. Patented Sept; 10, 1895.

A T TOR/VB Y .I' WITNESSES: g9 INVENTOR J :1 A

AN DREW RGRAKAM. PHOTOUMQWASHINGTONJL TATES WILLIAM M. SOHLESINGER, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO JOHN I. MCDUFFEE, TRUSTEE, OF SAME PLACE.

ELECTRIC :RAI LWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 546,059, dated September 10, 1895.

Application filed November 24, 1885. Serial No. 188,871. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM M. SoHLns- INGER, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania,

have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Railways, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings wherein- Figure 1 is a diagram showing a line of railway and cars, a generator, a continuous line conductor, a sectional line conductor, and safety devices with. a common feedingconductor embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a diagram of generator and line conductors, showing both conductors composed of sections, each having a safety device and feeding-conductors. Fig. 3 is a like view showing one of the conductors composed of sections and separate feeding-conductors for one or more of the sections and their safety devices. Fig. 4 is a diagram of generator and conductors, showing in detail a preferable form of safety devices for the sections of a line conductor, one of the safety devices being indicated in its open position to cut the section to which it is applied out of the line-circuit.

My invention has relation to that form of electric railways wherein a line of conductors having generators located along the line of railway for feeding a current to and from end to end of the line or working conductors 3 5 are used; and it has for its objectto obtain safety of traffic or continuity of travel by preventing one or more electrical defects at any point on'the line stopping the traffic or travel on the whole line or any extended por- 0 tion of the same, thereby confining the fault to the smallest space or length; of line possible, and to secure a better subdivision of the current to the different cars on the line.

To accomplish these objects I divide one 5 or both of the line conductors into sections which are disconnected or insulated from one another and provide each section with an electrical or current safety device which has a separate conductor.

My invention accordingly consists of a line of conductors oneor both of which consist of insulated or disconnected sections, a safety device for each section, and a separate feeding-conductor for all or any group of the safety devices and of the improvements hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, A in Fig. 1 represents a line of railway; B, the cars, which are provided with suitable electro-rnotors, and traveling connections with the line conductors C O, made in any of the well-known ways, and as the cars and their motors and traveling connections form in themselves no part of this invention they need not be further described. The conductors O C have a generator D, as indicated. One of the conductors C is continuous and leads directly to one of the commutator-brushes of the generator, while the conductor 0' is composed of disconnected sections 0 c, or sections insulated from one another, as indicated at c, and is not directly connected to the generator. Each such section is provided or is in circuit with an electric or current safety deviceE, of any suitable or desired kind, and these safety devices E are connected to a common or singie wire or conductor F, which leads to the other commutator-brush of the generator. The conductors C C are the working conductors, and with which the traveling brushes of the car contact. The safety devices E are so constructed and arranged that so long as the insulation or electrical condition of the conductor-sections c and conductor 0 continues perfect or no short-circuiting occurs between the sections 0 and wire or conductor 0 the current passes from conductor F to such conductor-sections through their safety devices to maintain the line or working circuit intact and secure safety and continuity of traf- 9c fic or travel throughout the line; but as soon as there is an electrical defect or faulty insulation in any one of the sections a and conductors G tending to short-circuit the line-current then the safety device for said section acts or 5 is operated by the excess of current passing through it to break the circuit or connection between said section and the feeding conductor F. When this happens, said section is electrically cut out of the conductor 0, or no cur- 10o rent is supplied to said section, while all the other sections of said conductor are in circuit with the generator, providing their electrical.

condition is good. Hence cars upon thelatter continue their travel irrespective of the cutting out of any of the bad sections of conductor C. When any section a is so cut out, it must be repaired, and during repairs the cars arriving at the bad section are moved over it by any suitable power or appliances, such, for instance, as by attaching horses or otherwise drawing the car over such section, if it be a short one, and my improvements are applied to street-cars. If applied to other railroads, a motive power either on the train or located along the line of the load section will be used, or the cars may be shunted to another track. As soon as the repairs are made the safety device is manually adjusted to connect the section with the feeding-conductor.

In Fig.4: I have shown apreferable form of safety device comprising a pivoted leverf, having a retracting-springf and armature f for magnet G, a second pivoted lever h at right angles to lever f and having a retracting-spring h, and a separately-supported contact-plate h which is in circuit with the feeding-conductor F. The current from the latter to each section 0 of the conductor 0 is by way of contact-plate 77. to lever h, and thence by way of Wire 1 to the conductor-sections 0. The magnet G" may be included in wire 1 or in series with lever 72., as indicated at as, or be in a shunt 2 from said lever, as

shown at Y. In the latter case a suitable insulation Z is located at one of the shunt-terminals, and a suitable resistance-coil Z conmeets the shunt-terminals.

The magnet of the safety devices is so wound that it is only energized to attract its armature against the action of springf by an excess of current passing to the section to which it is applied, and as this excess of current can only pass to said section when it is in a faulty electrical condition, or one which short-circuits the line through it to the opposite or the continuous conductor (J, it follows that said i devices do not act until a section becomes electrically defective. When this occurs, the magnet G draws down the armature end f of lever f, releasing lever h or allowing its spring h to act to Withdraw it from or break contact with plate b As soon as this occurs the current between feeding-conductor F and the said conductor-section c is broken, or the latter is cut out of the line-circuit, as indicated at Z, Fig. 4.. As soon as the cut-out or faulty section of conductor 0 is ascertained, which may be automatically done by means of an electrical indicator located at a central station and in circuit with all the safety devices of the line, as fully described in an application filed of an even date herewith, the repairs to the section are made, whereupon the levers f h are locked at right angles to one another, or they are returned to their normal position, as indicated atm, to complete the circuit between the feeding-conductor and the conductor-section.

In a railway constructed as above described it will therefore be noted that the sections of one or both working conductors are in multiple arc and any fault or defect in the electrical condition of a conductor-section causes it to be automatically cut out of the line or working circuit without affecting the circuit connections of any other section, the traffic or travel upon any other part of the line is not interfered with, and travel is only temporarily stopped upon the faulty section of conductor 0, and cars arriving at this section are moved over it by any suitable extraneous means to keep the travel or traffic safe and continuous. If desired, both conductors O C may be composed of sections each having safety devices connected to feeding-conductors leading to the generator, as shown in Fig. 2. By dividing the conductors into sections and using the safety devices and feeding-conductor, as described, a better subdivision of the current to the different cars on the line is obtained.

By providing separate feeding-conductors for one or more than one safety device and conductor-section c, as shown in Fig. 8, any amount of current may be supplied to the different cars on the line, and in the last-described construction any one of the separate feeding-conductors F forms a reserve wire for connecting it with any one of the other feeding-conductors in case of a breakdown or defect occurring therein, as shown at 3.

Referring to Figs. 1, 2, and at, there is a single feeder which is used to convey all the current required for the car-service, which current passes over the single feeder to the disconnected or insulated sections of working conductor. The line-pressure in such feeder must always be continuously lower from the station or generator toward the farthest point of service. Consequently such an arrangement may be practically and economically availed of only in case of a comparatively small number of cars and a comparatively short line. Moreover, an accident to such single feeder-for example, near the power-house or generator-would paralyze the whole line, and thus interrupt travel. Since this single feeder supplies all the current required on the line and since the voltage is necessarily limited by considerations of safety and insulation, it follows that the size of the feeding-conductor must in many instances be abnormally large, because the resistance is inversely proportional to the size of the conductor. Referring to Fig. 3, wherein there are separate feeders in multiple are from one pole or terminal of the source of electrical energy, it is clear that the potentials or linepressures may be made equal at all points along the line. Moreover, the current for all the cars that may be found in any one section is carried wholly over the feeder or feeders of that section, the feeders and working conductor of other sections being electrically independent of each other, and the working conductor itself .may be of comparatively small size. One great advantage obtained by the system of Fig.3 lies in this, that the effects of several classes of accident on the line may be thus localized, and each feeder, being supplied with a switch of the above-described or of any preferred construction, may be thrown, for example, automatically outof or put in line at will, the other sections not being in any way affected thereby. If, then, the working conductor be broken at any point or if there be a short circuit to ground, the movement of the cars over the other sections need not be interrupted.

I do not confinemy invention to any particular kind of safety device, as it may be of an electromagnetic, a fusible strip, or other well-known construction of same. Neither do I limit myself to the number or to the length of the sections composing the conductors, nor to the dividing one or both line conductors into sections, nor to the manner of connecting the safety devices to the generator, as it is obvious that the same may be numerously varied without departing from the spirit of my invention.

hat I claim is 1. In an electric railway the combination of, a series of separate feeding conductors extendingin multiple arc relation from one generator pole or terminal to points along the line of way, safety devices for said separate feedin g conductors, a working conductor comprising a series of insulated or disconnected sections disposed along theline of way and supplied by said separate feeding conductors, and return circuit connections opposed to said sections and leading to the other generator pole, or terminal, substantially as described.

2. In an electric circuit, a working conductor composed of insulated or disconnected sections in normally closed multiple arc relation with a feeding conductor by Way of magnets G, right angle levers h and f and contact points, and one of said levers carrying or having affixed thereto an armature for said magnets which act by eXcess of current passing through them to cut the sections out of the WILLIAM M. SCIILESINGER.

Witnesses:

S. J. VAN STAv'oREN, CHAS. F. VAN HORN. 

